


Knitting

by WakeUpDreaming



Series: Holla to the Holidays: December 2015 Collection [12]
Category: Scorpion (TV 2014)
Genre: Banter, Christmas Sweaters, F/M, Ferret Bueller - Freeform, Garage smooching, Knitting, Research, holiday fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-19
Updated: 2015-12-19
Packaged: 2018-05-07 16:41:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5463683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WakeUpDreaming/pseuds/WakeUpDreaming
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Happy's got work to do. Unfortunately, Ferret Bueller is in the way. Wearing a Christmas sweater.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Knitting

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks Nisha for the prompt "Someone knit Ferret Bueller a jumper. "He thinks he's people"."

At first she thinks the squeaking is her tools. Happy gears up the chain saw to start her work for the day, but has to immediately reconsider when Ferret Bueller pops his head up on her bench, wearing the most absurd little Christmas sweater she’s ever seen.

“Walter!” Happy shouts over the whir of her chair saw. “Get the ferret out of here!”

Walter, however, doesn’t hear a damn word she’s saying. Nobody does, apparently. Paige is upstairs working out some PR problem and Sly’s been outside all day.

Happy’s in a little trouble and the saw is getting freaking heavy.

“Toby!” Happy shouts. “Toby, a little help over here?"

Toby drops his knitting – what’s with him and the knitting lately? – and runs to her, taking the chain saw out of her hands.

She stares at him. “I meant the ferret,” she says, nodding to where Ferret Bueller is still pleasantly staring at them.

Toby looks down. “Oh.” He hands the chain saw back to Happy and grabs the ferret. “You know, I think I got the better deal here.”

Happy rolls her eyes, propping the saw up on the table. “Can I ask something?” she says.

Toby nods and makes Ferret Bueller nod alongside him. “Of course, Happy!” he says in a high pitched voice.

“I’m not talking to the ferret,” Happy says pointedly. “But it has to do with that ridiculous sweater.”

“Ridiculous?!” Toby exclaims. “This is a high quality ugly sweater.”

“It’s got a reindeer on it.”

Toby nods. “High quality ugly sweater,” he repeats, wiggling Ferret’s paws with each word.

“Okay, but why?” Happy asks. “Why is this sweater thing happening? And the knitting?”

Toby shrugs. “I’m doing a study.”

Happy just stares at him. “What?”

“I’ve realized that, because my gambling habits are increased by situations of high stress or anxiety, a replacement behavior is necessary to prevent me from going back. So I started knitting.”

“You started knitting,” Happy repeats.

Toby nods. “I did! And it’s working. Since October I’ve learned how to do patterns.” He grins, looking pretty proud of himself, and points at Ferret Bueller. “I can make ferret sweaters, scarves, and head bands.”

“Head bands?”

He frowns. “I tried a hat but it didn’t work. So, head band."

Happy laughs. “So do you have, like, measurable data points?”

Toby nods. “During instances of anxiety or stress, I note the impulse to gamble or to knit, or both. Then I record whether or not I gamble or knit.”

“And it’s leaning toward knitting now?” Happy asks.

Toby nods again. “When Megan died I knitted seven scarves, but I didn’t go to the track once.” He smiles. “It’s working, Hap.”

She rests a hand on his arm and Ferret Bueller uses it to scamper off back to his cage. “You’re giving us all hand knitted gifts for Christmas, aren’t you.”

“Yeah,” says Toby sheepishly. “I might have knitted you a snowman scarf.”

Happy laughs. “Great. I’m sure I’ll have many opportunities to wear it. In California.”

“We go on cold missions!” he defends. “Anyway, the study is supposed to be twelve weeks long, but even so I’m not going to stop next week.” He grins. “I think I might be close to completely breaking the habit.”

Happy looks at him for a moment, a thought popping into her head. “But you have a flaw in your data.”

She’s never seen him look so offended. “Excuse me?!” he exclaims.

“Doesn’t the fact that we just started dating interfere with your research?” Happy asks, adjusting his jacket. “I mean, I’m a pretty efficient anxiety management method.” She lets her hand rest on his neck, thumb rubbing against that spot behind his ear that drives him crazy. “And you’ve been knitting less and hanging out with me more.”

Toby stares at her for a second then snaps out of it. “I know you never taken any courses in stats or research methods,” he says, “but for some reason the fact that you’re talking about research protocol is kind of getting me going.” He plants a hand on either side of her, leaning in.

“Oh, hold up, Doc,” she says, grinning, a hand on his chest. “You need to admit that your study is flawed.”

“It’s not flawed!” he says. “It’s just – you’re a new variable." His eyes go to her lips. "A very unpredictable variable."

Happy quirks an eyebrow. “That directly interferes with the results of your data.” She leans in close. “Admit it,” she says, voice low. “I mess with your data.”

Toby licks his lips, stepping even closer to her. Happy can’t believe that he still lights her up like this, that the excitement didn’t wear off after their first kiss. She still wants nothing more than to haul him close, get his lips on hers, his hands on her.

She won’t, though. Not until he admits it.

He leans in, and Happy turns her head. His lips land on her neck, and he kisses gently.

“Not until you admit that I’m your best anxiety management,” she says. She bites her lip to keep control when he gently sucks at the spot on her neck. "And that your study is flawed."

“You’re better than knitting,” he says, voice vibrating against her skin.

“Still haven’t said it,” Happy sing songs. She can’t keep from gripping his hips as his lips work, fighting back the moan building in her throat.

He groans. “Fine,” he says. “My study has an inherent flaw and the report will reflect that you, Happy Quinn, were the interfering variable, as you became part of my life part way through the study. This will be identified in the discussion portion of the study.”

Happy grins. “Tis the season to mess with Toby,” she sings. But even so, she pulls him close and kisses him, his hands in her hair.

“Maybe we should start a study,” Happy says, leaning away. “Whenever we get bored, stressed, or anxious, you come over my place and we, uh,” she wiggles her eyebrows, “get some research done.”

Toby looks at her. “Inherently flawed,” he says, kissing her cheek and walking back to his desk. “I always want to do you for research. I’d be over there all the time.”

“You already are at my apartment all the time.”

Toby shoots her a grin. “Yeah,” he says, “but you like me there.”

She picks up the chain saw again to get back to work. “Well, Doc,” she says, “you’ve got me there.”


End file.
